The VORS 2024 keynote, title “Compost, one way to say thanks,” was presented by Dr. Sally Brown.

Composting is typically seen as a big step up from landfilling. It is, but it is also much more than that. Compost - it's nature's climate champion. When we apply compost to the soil we are also giving back, thanking the soil for feeding us. We are feeding the soil the same way that the soil feeds us. Communicating that may be a powerful tool to help people understand the importance of putting the food scraps in and keeping the plastic out.

Video time stamps:

• 0:00-1:38 Introduction by Dan Goossen, CAV President

• 1:38-32:02 Keynote from Dr. Sally Brown, titled "Compost, one way to say thanks."

• 32:00-55:30 Q&A with Dr. Sally Brown

Resources shared:

• Connections: Food Waste And Landfill Methane Report — A Giant Step On A Long Road (BioCycle, January 2024)

• Connections: Household Food Waste Gadgets (BioCycle, April 2022)

• Connections: What Is NOT Compost (BioCycle, March 2023)

• Soil Health Institute

• Connections: EOM Is The Key To SOM (BioCycle, March 2021)

• Connections: Why Regenerative Agriculture Needs Recycled Organics (BioCycle, May 2020)

• Connections: Plants Speak The Truth (BioCycle, April 2024)

• ‘I don’t know how we’ll survive’: the farmers facing ruin in Maine’s ‘forever chemicals’ crisis (The Guardian, March 2022)